Big Business has a Friend in Judge Brett Kavanaugh

Public Citizen issued an announcement today regarding U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh. What follows details the organization’s look into Judge Kavanaugh’s judicial record and the impact it could have on U.S. consumers and the environment.

Public Citizen issued an announcement today regarding U.S. Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh. What follows details the organization’s look into Judge Kavanaugh’s judicial record and the impact it could have on U.S. consumers and the environment.

Judge Brett Kavanaugh’s “judicial record demonstrates an overwhelming tendency to reach conclusions favorable to business interests and opposed to consumers, workers, environmental protections and victims of human rights abuses.

We examined each of the 101 cases where Judge Kavanaugh wrote an opinion and where there was disagreement among the judges hearing the case.

Those cases are often more revealing than unanimous decisions.

Air pollution at sunrise; image by SD-Pictures, via Pixabay, CC0.

The results were striking:

In 22 cases involving consumer and other regulatory issues, Judge Kavanaugh sided against consumers and the public interest 18 times.

In all seven cases involving victims suing for compensation over police or human rights abuses, Judge Kavanaugh sided with the alleged abuser and against the victims.

In both antitrust cases, Judge Kavanaugh sided with merging companies and against antitrust enforcement agencies.

Important themes also emerge in analyzing the decisions themselves.

Over and over, Judge Kavanaugh’s doctrines favor Big Business.

For example, Judge Kavanaugh believes that corporations almost always should be able to challenge regulations that affect them in court, but he imposes enormous hurdles on the ability of citizen groups like Public Citizen to sue.

Judge Kavanaugh believes federal agencies should be permitted to regulate corporations on “major questions” only when Congress specifically instructs them to do so ‪—‬ ‬a rarity.

When government agencies are challenged by corporations, Judge Kavanaugh almost always rules against the agencies. But when consumer or public interest groups challenge agencies, it’s an entirely different story — he sides with the agencies.

About Jay W. Belle Isle

Before becoming LegalReader's Editor-in-Chief, Jay W. Belle Isle worked as a freelance copywriter with clients on four continents. Jay has a degree in Business Administration from Cleary University and a Juris Doctor from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. Jay has also worked as a contracts administrator for a DOD contractor specializing in vehicle armor.

About Legal Reader

Legal Reader is devoted to protecting consumers. We take pride in exposing the hypocrisy of corporations, other organizations, and individuals whose actions put innocent people in harm’s way. We are unapologetic in our dedication to informing the public and unafraid to call out those who are more focused on profits than people’s safety.